Text Messages from the President?
Long, long ago President Roosevelt had fireside chats each week and people crowded around their radios to hear what the president had to say. But, now in a world when (nearly) everyone can send twitter updates from their cell phones, a weekly address from the leader of the free world seems so passé.
During the presidential campaign, Obama was known for his savvy use of technology. (Who didn’t personally receive an email from one of his famous supporters?) Beyond regular email blasts, video uploads and comprehensive blog updates, the Obama campaign used every high-tech means at their disposal. YOU could get a personal text message from Obama himself. YOU would be the first to know about his Vice-Presidential pick.
Except, maybe, kind of, not.
And the tech world – not to mention the blogosphere – has been awash in excitement about what could be technologically possible for Obama now that he is President.
Unfortunately, maybe, kind of, not much.
Historically, the White House and the President haven’t been at the forefront of technology. One presidential candidate (not saying who) claimed to not even know how to use a computer and no one seemed to think this was a necessary part of the job description.
But, this could be in large part because the administration does not represent people at the forefront of technology. Email updates were fine when the Obama campaign was just trying to reach hipster 20-somethings, but “middle America” is only starting to get onboard the internet-phone thing. How are you going to send twitter updates to parts of the country that don’t know what twitter is?
And even if Obama wanted to, he can’t send YOU the same emails he once did. (Your relationship isn’t the same anymore.)
For obvious reasons, laws require that fundraising emails be separated from real government business. For perhaps less obvious reasons, this meant that Obama handed off his email list to the Democratic National Committee, only they’re calling it “Organizing for America,” which sounds a little like DNC. Barackobama.com now invites you to donate to Organizing for America.
So all the wondrous email lists that the blogosphere spoke of with awe: going to be used for fundraising. Ah, the wonder.
The White House, itself, has been attempting to take small steps, baby steps. Most noticeably, at first, whitehouse.gov underwent a drastic redesign. The new site includes a weekly video update, a regular blog, news updates and an open forum to people to submit questions in live time. OK, they haven’t quite got the last one yet. But, during Obama’s transition to the White House, his transitional website (change.gov) did host an internet forum in which people were able to submit questions to actual staffers. It can only be assumed they’ll try something similar again soon.
“They” being, of course, ta da: the newly hired media and internet team. Like so many things (cough, stimulus, cough), who knows what it will actually do, but just the gesture has to mean something, right? Right?
Maybe, most importantly, Obama has been actually using technology to get things done. (gasp). His first attempts included usaservice.org – which encouraged people to volunteer in their communities – and emails asking people to host house meetings to discuss the stimulus package.
The technological effort behind the stimulus package has been the new government’s most comprehensive and impressive. Recovery.gov, which Obama announced in both regular media and in an email to ME personally, is attempting to use the internet to give people the information that they want. Where is their money going? Is it working? It includes a stunningly comprehensive searchable database. Even if you haven’t quite figured out how to use it yet (and it can be a little slow), the site itself marks a huge and important departure from past technophobic Presidents.
But, we should expect no less from a President so in tune with the current technology that he refused to give up his Blackberry like those who came before him. (Because they totally had Blackberrys in the 50s.)
Of course, Obama keeping his handheld email and phone has prompted people to denounce all the downsides. He could be hacked! Our security is at risk! He’ll get spam!
Sure, the President’s email could be hacked. And, I suppose, if he happened to be sending state secrets on his personal email account, which the Chinese government was able to access by luring him into a fake phishing site (I knew Paypal didn’t need me to call and give them my social security number!) and they were then able to use that email to detonate dirty bombs in the middle of our biggest cities, well that would be bad. But, really, we have become so dependent on technology, so reliant, that to believe this or that one particular spot will be our country’s undoing is misguided. The internet, after all, was originally developed by the military, so they have some experience with protecting themselves from the problems associated with it.
We may have some sci-fi idea that the President will be sending out text messages to alert citizens of oncoming disaster or that a lone man could bring down our infrastructure with the push of a computer key (ala the most recent Die Hard), but that isn’t quite how it works yet. It was still a kooky news story when one small town mayor in Kentucky used his iPhone to update his Facebook with news during a major ice storm.
Maybe, someday you’ll be getting twitter updates from the President while you download streaming video from his office and friend him on Facebook. But not yet.
>Written by d/visible contributor Kelly Dunleavy.
